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Cisco Challenges Office Throne

With only so much network gear that can be sold, Cisco has been steadily encroaching on Microsoft's territory. One move was unified communications. A more recent gambit involves selling servers stacked to the gill with virtualization wares.

Neither action inspired a meaningful Microsoft response, but the latest Cisco move probably won't be taken lightly. The network king is making noise about a new Web-based system to create and share productivity documents and files. Can you say Office Live?

The apps aren't expected to be as full-featured as Office, which is good and bad. For many, all those features make the darn software too hard to use. On the other hand, if it's missing the one feature you really need, then it's no-go.

Do you prefer full-featured tools or slimmed-down apps? Make your feelings known at dbarney@redmondmag.com.